One of the constant refrains we hear from the anti-Israel crowd demanding a ceasefire involves the need for Israel to “tone down” the war and curb the loss of life of the “innocent civilians” who Hamas claims have been killed by the IDF in the tens of thousands. First of all, the Gaza Health Ministry, run by Hamas, has been caught lying repeatedly and the numbers are probably grossly exaggerated. Now, however, some of the former hostages who have been released have been telling their horror stories and it turns out that those “innocent civilians” weren’t very innocent after all. Even some of the Palestinian women and children took part in kidnapping and holding the hostages. Doctors in the hospitals were involved as well. In some cases, the only difference between the Hamas fighters and those civilians was that the civilians didn’t wear uniforms. (Free Beacon)

Israeli women and children have in recent weeks begun speaking publicly about what they experienced during nearly two months in Hamas captivity late last year.

In primetime Hebrew TV interviews, the released hostages have confirmed that ordinary Gazans were deeply complicit in every stage of the hostage scheme. Unarmed teens helped to abduct Jews from their homes on Oct. 7, while Gazan women and children held some of the Israelis captive. In other cases, Gazan doctors collaborated with Hamas terrorists to covertly treat kidnapped Israelis and imprison them in hospitals.

When the Israelis encountered Gazans on the streets, the results were often terrifying.

The revelations underscore the urgency of Israel’s 100-plus-day war to destroy Hamas and bring home the 132 hostages who, officials believe, remain captive in Gaza.

The hostages are telling the story of what’s being described as a “radicalized population.” And Israeli intelligence officials concur. They’ve been trying to tell people this since the entire affair began. Just because someone isn’t wearing a uniform and personally firing rockets at Israel every night, that doesn’t mean they aren’t Hamas in their hearts.

They describe someone who runs a shop selling vegetables and water. But in the back, he keeps a supply of weapons and ammunition. At home, his wife and his daughter help keep tabs on an Israeli hostage. Doctors in the hospitals were treating wounded Israelis, but then turning them over to Hamas fighters to take away through the tunnels, generally connected directly to the basement of the hospital.

During the original attacks on October 7, women and teenagers accompanied the fighters into Israel and helped tie up and lead away hostages. Some looted the homes of Israelis while they were in the villages while the fighters were executing people outside. Much of this was caught on video at the time, but it rarely received the attention it deserved.

This is the culture of anti-Israel hatred that we’ve been told about repeatedly. It begins when the supposedly innocent Palestinians are children and continues throughout their lives. I’ve suspected as much and suggested it here before, but saying such things results in being branded a radical, hateful Zionist monster. But the more we learn, the more clear it becomes that this is the reality on the ground in Gaza.

We really need to rethink the whole future of the Gaza Strip and what will become of it once the war is over. Western leaders, including some in America, keep acting as if once Hamas is gone, Gaza can be turned over to some sort of civilian governing authority reliant on Western aid and things will settle down into a peaceful, two-state solution. But that is almost certainly a fantasy. Once all of the Hamas fighters and leaders have been captured or killed (assuming that’s even possible), that cancer will regrow. Even if it’s under a different name, a new Hamas will probably arise because the Palestinians are Hamas in their very souls. They were raised to be that way and they are unlikely to change. This is an unpleasant reality, but it’s one that Israel is clearly aware of and the West needs to smarten up and get on the same page.